Rotary dump



E. J. BEST.

I ROTARY DUMP. APPLICATION FILED JULY 12. 1920.

1,435,591 Patented Nov. M, 1 .922.

4 SHEETS-sum 1.

INVENTOR ATTORNEY E. 1. BEST.

ROTARY DUMP.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 12, 1920.

1,435,691 I Patented Nov. M, 1922?.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

INVENTOR ATTORNEY E. J. BEST.

ROTARY DUMP.

APPLICATION FILED JULY I2, 1920.

1A35fi9 1 Patented Nov. 14, 1922.

4 SHEETS-SHEEI 3.

4-0 4 .57 .42 i 4? I 6/ I 4 r-0 12 I 7 27 #4 I 95 I 4? F 50 47 1 I, z ii ai I I JP F/G- 6 INVENTOR EJBEST ATTORNEY E. 1. BEST.

ROTARY DUMP.

APPLICATION FILED JULY IL 1920.

1,435,691. PatentedNbv. 14,1922.

4SHEETS-SHEET 4.

INVENTOR ATTORNEY Patented Nov. l i, 1922.

EDWIN JOHN BEST, 015 FAIRFIELD, ALABAMA.

ROTARY DUMP.

Application filed. July 12,

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWIN J. BEST, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at F airfield, in the county of Jefferson and State of Alabama, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Rotary Dumps, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to a rotary car dumper and especially to the type of rotary dump adapted to receive a number of cars at the time and dump them preferably by a complete rotation of the dump.

My present invention is in many respects an improvement upon the rotary car dump forming the subject matter of my pending application Serial No. 310,810, filed on the 12th day of July, 1919. In that application I show a rotary dump in which the tube is of the squirrel cage design capable of receiving and dumping five cars, and provided with riding rings which roll on trunnion wheels, one end thrust roller being provided at the ower end of the tube. A. trunnion wheel driven by each of the riding rings is fast on a short shaft carrying overhung flywheels which function on the starting of the rotation of the tube as unbalanced by the loaded cars therein, to retard the initial rotation of the tube and 'tlierebyto build up in themselves the necessary energy to return the tube to initial position after the cars are dumped. In the operation of that dump it was found that very much heavier flywheels were required. if the speed of rotation was to be slowed up to the extent cle- 1 is, and one object of my invention was to solve this problem of design for the fiy-wheels which has been done by utilizing drums extending from ring to ring for the length of the dump and each driven by a trunnion hcel. This design provides the requisite fly-wheel weight without involving engineering problems which might prove serious when it is considered that the clearance is small between the fly-wheel center and the tube and that if it were attempted to sup port too much wei ht on overhung trunnion bearings the design might prove impractical.

It was found that the end thrust in the former type of dump could not be taken 1920. Serial No. 395,454.

care of so well by a single rigid thrust roller and this dump has been designed with absorb the thrust of the tube, bring it to rest and then pull the tube back to initial position. All of these latches are controlled by a continuous shaft with a lever located at one end of the dump and are normally spring-pressed into operating position.

A further feature ofthis invention relates to preventing back motion of the tube as designed for a complete rotation with each operation and to this end each latch mechanism is supplemented by a gravity retarding pawl so set as to act as a wedge and lock to pre vent any appreciable backward rotation of the tube but not however, to interfere with the free forward rotation as it moves to dump.

My invention involves other novel features of design and construction which are more fully described hereinafter, and which are illustrated in their preferred embodiment only in the accompanying drawings which form a part of this specification, and in which 2- v car lumper taken 3 with the mine cars Fig. 2 is a detail view showing one of 1e trunnion wheelswith its shaft and connections to the adjacent fly-wheel drums which are shown in half section.

Fig. 3 is a transverse cross sectional view showing the mine car and the latch and brake mechanism in elevation.

Fig. 4 is a detail plan view; and

Fig. 5 is a detail elevation of one of the latch and brake mechanisms.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged detail view of the thrust roller and its bearing frame broken away with a section of the riding ring shown in dotted lines.

Fig. 7 is an enlarged detail view of half of the fly-wheel drum broken away to show both ends,

Fig. 8 is an end view of Fig. 7.

Fig. 9 is a detail side view of the spring clevis for the latches and latch operating rod shown in side elevation; and

Fig. 10 is atop plan view of the latch and yoke in assembled. position.

Similar reference numerals refer to similar parts throughout the drawings.

According to the embodiment of my invention illustrated, I show a rotary dump adapted to receive and dump at one time all cars on a trip. The dump comprises a tube of the lattice box girder type which I consider preferable for heavy loads, but it will be understood that the design of the tube may be varied without departure from my invention. As made up the tube comprises a series of riding rings 1 formed of railroad rails or similar rolled steel bars bent and machined to a true circle and these are con- .uected together by longitudinal structural members such as channel irons 2 and angle irons 3 which extend the full length of the tube and are attached on each side of the tube'center to vertical channel bars 5 which are connected by brace plates 4 to each ring 1. Longitudinal inverted channels 6 also cxtend from end to end of the tube on each side of its center and are tied to the uprights 5 and the channels 2 and are braced to each other and to the adjacent sides of the ring by the lattice work 7 The uprights 5 carry cross supports 8 attached by brackets 8 to the uprights 5, upon which supports the longitudinal track rails 9 rest. The sup ports for the rails, in the design shown, are set off center so as to unbalance the tube by the loaded cars therein on the side towards which it is intended that the dump shall. rotate. Hold-down bars 10 extend from end to end above thewheels 11 of the mine cars 12, these hold-downs being suitably attached to the channels 6. The uprights are suitably braced to the flanges of the riding rings by bottom angles 12 and brackets 13 and by top brackets 14 and 15, all of which structure described merely as illustrative of a typical tube but without intending thereby to limit myself to such structural. details. So far as my present invention is concerned the tube may be of any suitable design. and constructed of any available material.

The tube is supported on beams 16 suitably attached to or seated in the tipple structure 17, which as shown is of reinforced concrete construction. The tube is set with each riding ring 2 above a beam 16 and adapted to ride upon the trunnion wheels 18 and 19 which rotate in bearings 20 mounted on the beam. 1 Each trunnion wheel 19 is mounted on its respective shaft 21 (see Fig. 2), the ends of which overhang beyond its bearing 20 and one shaft end 22 is squared to receive a key which slips into a square opening 23 in the bearing nut 24;

seated in the adjacent or upper end of a flywheel drum 25. The other overhanging shaft end 26 is shouldered to receive an anti friction thrust bearing 27 which takes the end thrust from the adjacent or lower end of another fly-wheel drum, which end is turned with an opening to rotate on the shaft end 26. It will be seen from this description, which is typical of the shaft and fly-wheel connections for the trunnion wheel 19 of each riding ring, that each drum is supported on a pair of adjacent aligning shafts 21 and extends substantially from ring to ring, the lower end of the drums when inclined engaging, the thrust bearings on one shaft 21 while the upper end of such drum has its square seat 23 mounted on and free to move axially relatively to the squared end 22 of the other shaft 21. This design makes ample provision for the longitudinal. expansion and contraction of the drums 25. These drums are preferably cast in four longitudinal segments, the segment end being provided with bolt seats 28, (see Fig. 8) to receive fastening bolts which assemble them. The bearing nut 2d has the opening therefor formed in the drum sections so that the nut is held in place as the drum sections are clamped together and in this manner I reduce the machine work on and cost of t ,e drum which requires only to have the bearing for the shaft end 26 turned therein and the bolt holes 29 drilled in the seats 28. Each driving ringl is provided with a stop 29 in the form of a curved tapering meta block or casting riveted or suitably attached. to the web of the ring and having its squared stop engaging end projecting substantially beyond the side of the rail ball or tread. Each of these stops is adapted to be engaged by its respective latch 30, which as shown is formed by a metal bar outer end pivotally connected by a vertical pivot bolt 31 to yoke 32. which in turn is pivotally mounted on a horizontal pivot bolt mounted in a bracket formed by the spaced angles 34 at the rear of a frame that carries the latch mechanism for each ring 1. This frame 35 is connected by side plates 36 and top and bottom plates 37 and 38, respectively, to the .upright angles 39 that in turn are connected at their bases to spaced supporting beams 16, thus tying the latch support rigidly and dirrctly to the beams that carry the load of the riding ring which the latch mechanism controls. Each latch near its free end is provided with a flared hole through which a continuous shaft 40 passes, this shaft being connected to each latch bar by means of a clevis or yoke 41 .(see Figs. 9 and 10). Each clevis yoke is provided with aligning holes 42 for the passage of the shaft 40 and with holes 43 for the reception of bolts or pins by means of which the yoke is made fast on the shaft on each side of its respective latch 30. As seen in Fig. 10, the yoke heads are bevelled at M to avoid binding on the latch 30 are supported by the cross bolts or pins 50 in each latch frame on which the latches rest normally. These bolts or pins are inserted horizontally through the opposite-end walls 36 of the frame and made fast therein in any suitable manner. At one end of the dump I provide an operating lever 51 for the shaft 40, this lever being mounted on the tipple adjacent to that end of the dump most convenient for the particular operation contemplated. A fixed stop 52 is provided through which the shaft 40 slides and which forms a seat for a spring 53 which acts to hold the lever 51 and shaft 40 with the latches in initial position which is the operating or stop engaging position for the latches. Any suit-able spring arrangement may be provided which is brought under tension when the lever is pulled to shift the latches laterally to the dotted line position shown in Fig. 4: when they release the stops 29. This limited lateral movement of the latches is provided for by their vertical pivot pins 31 and the upward movement of the latches responsive to the upward thrust from the ring stops is provided for by the hori- Zontal yoke pivot this movement being restricted by the springs l9.

In order to prevent a reverse or backward movement of the tube should it fail to complete its revolution of dumping movement, I associate with the latching mechanism for each riding ring a gravity brake pawl 54, which is preferably formed by a bar pivoted at its rear end on the latch pivot bolt 33 and having a brake-shoe 55 attached at its free end and shaped to straddle and frictionally engage the tread of its respective riding ring 1. The pawl is set at such an angle relative to the ring that the latter is free to turn in its normal operating direction without restraint from the pawl but if it seeks to move backward the pawl becomes wedged against its pivot pin 33 and serves as a brake or stop to prevent back swing should the dump for any cause fail to complete its revolution. This will lessen the labor for righting the dump should there be failure in operation. It is essential to control the :pawl so that it will not prevent the limited back swing of the tube produced by the pull of the springs 49 as otherwise the dump might not always be returned to its initial position. To this end I provide each pawl. with a side lug disposed to overhang the adjacent latch 30 so that when the latches are liitedby the impact from the ring stops they engage and lift the brakeshoes from the riding rings and hold them clear of the rings until the dump settles back, responsive 'to the pull of springs 49 to initial position,

whereupon the brake-shoes are dropped by the descending latches into engagement with the rlngs 1 and immediately lock the dump in its initial position.

To provide for the end thrust on the dumping tube, which is greater as the angle of inclination of the tube increases, I provide opposite each riding ring a thrust bearing which consists of a roller 56 mounted in suitable antifriction bearings 57 in a housing 58 which is made fast to a roller beam 59; which beam at its outer end is connected by a vertical journal bolt 60 to the angle irons 61 at the back of the latch housing. This roller beam 59 has a web 59" through which the bolt 50 passes freely and this web serves as a seat for a coil spring 62 interposed between it and the housing wall 86 on the side of the ring 1 against which the thrust roller bears. These springs 62 therefore absorb the thrust imparted by the riding rings through their respective rollers 56 and roller beams and the load is uniformly distributed throughout the tube. I prefer to provide each riding ring 1 with its respective latch 30, brake pawl 54-v and thrust roller 56 so that all the shocks and strains on the tube during operation are distributed uniformly therethrough and shaft torsional deflection obviated In operation. assuming the loaded cars in the dump. the spring will hold all of the latches 30 in stop engaging position and thus the dump. though unbalanced. is restrained from rotation lVhen the operator desires to dump, the lever 51 is pulled and all latches are simultaneously released. where upon the tube starts to rotate counter-clocl wise as viewed in Fig. 3. The tendency of the dump to rotate rapidly is restrained by the inertia of the heavy fly-wheel drums 25 which retard it so that I can obtain the desired speed of rotation. I determine the requisite flyewheel weight to accomplish this end, as follows :I first find the center of gravity of the car and also of the car loaded with the material to be dumped, then assume a location of the car in the tube and this will approximate a diameter of the tube. I

then calculate the center of gravity and weight of the tube and after obtaining the combined center of gravity tube and car I calculate the starting moment which should be a little greater than the friction moment that may he taken as five per cent of the load on the wheels at a radius of the riding rings. I next figure the power moment, assuming that the load will swing through an angle of 135 before dumping, then calculate the frictional resistance of the load for the remaining part of the circle and also the power necessary to raise the light center of gravity back to the starting point. The power moment must be greater than the last three calculations combined. 1 then calculate the flywheel effect necessary for the desired speed, say, at the rate of 6 to 10 R. P. M. and from this subtract the fly-wheel effect of tube and cars. The result will give the fly-wheel weight necessary for the dump.

Having calculated and designed the fly wheel drums according to the above principles, the dump in operation will start slowly and as it overcomes the inertia of the fly-wheels will acquire a gradually increasing speed until it dumps its contents, whereupon it changes its center of gravity and the dump rapidly loses its energy but this is supplemented by the fly-wheel drums which will overcome the frictional resistance of the light load to complete the dumping operation and will raise the light center of gravity back to starting position. As the dump approaches the starting position the stops 29 on the several riding rings will engage their respective latches 30 and the dump is brought to rest by the coil spring 49, which springs serve to pull the tube back to starting position and lower the brake pawls into operating position in which they lock the tube with its tracks 9 into alignment with the tipple tracks 63, whereupon the empty cars are run out of the dump and the dumping operation repeated.

My whole mechanism is especially designed for a very light but strong tube which will be as free as posslble from torslonal strains and will operate with maximum reliability.

rings ride, elongated fly-wheels of relatively small diameter driven by said trunnion wheels, and journal bearings for both ends of said fiy-wheels.

2. A dump comprising a plurality of rid- .ing rings, trunnion wheels upon which said rings ride, and fly-wheel drums extending from wheel to wheel and driven by said trunnion wheels.

3. A dump comprising a plurality of riding rings, trunnion wheels upon which said rings ride, and fly-wheel drums driven by said trunnion wheels, said trunnion wheels having shafts rotatable therewith, and said drums being mounted on the shafts of adacent aligning trunnion wheels.

41-. A dump comprising a plurality of riding rings, trunnion wheels upon which said rings ride, and fly-wheel drums driven by said trunnion wheels, said trunnion wheels having shafts rotatable therewith, and said drums being mounted on the shafts of adjacent aligning trunnion wheels with one end free to expand and contract relatively to its shaft support.

5. A dump comprising a plurality of riding rings, trunnion wheels upon which said rings ride, and fly-wheel drums driven by said trunnion wheels, said trunnion wheels having shafts rotatable therewith, and said drums being mounted on the shafts of ad jacent trunnion wheels, each drum having an antifriction thrust bearing at one end and having its other end keyed with a slip fit to a shaft of the adjacenttrunnion wheel.

6. In combination, a rotatable dump having annular riding rings, trunnion wheels on which each ring rides, aligning trunnion wheels for the several riding rings having shafts and bearings from which the shafts overhang, fly-wheel drums extending from hearing to hearing and mounted on the overhung ends of adjacent trunnion wheel shafts and means to drive each drum from one of its supporting trunnion shafts.

7. In combination, an inclined rotatable dump having annular riding rings, trunnion wheels on which each ring rides, aligning trunnion wheels for the several riding rings, trunnion bearings, fly-wheel drums extending from hearing to hearing, a driving connection between each drum and one adjacent trunnion, a journal supporting the lower end of each drum, and an antifriction end thrust hearing at said journal, the upper end of each drum being left free to expand and contract relatively to its trunnion driving connection, substantially as described.

8. The combination with a rotatable dump having riding rings and trunnion wheel supports therefor, of a stop lug on each riding ring, a vertically movable stop latch foreach ring, yielding means to restrain the movements of the latches responsive to the thrust from the stop lugs, and a common means to shift the several latches to release the dump.

9. The combination with a rotatable dump having riding rings and trunnion wheel supports therefor, of a stop lug on each riding ring a vertically and laterally movable stop latch for each ring, means to restrain the movements of the latches responsive to v dump having riding rings and trunnion wheel supports therefor, of a stop lug on each riding ring, a vertically and laterally movable stop latch for each ring, spring means to restrain the movements of the latches responsive to the thrust from the stop lugs, a common means to shift the sev eral latches laterally to release the dump, and means to support loaded cars off center in the dump to unbalance it for automatic rotation when unlatched.

11. The combination with an inclined rotatable dump having riding rings, trunnion wheel supports for the riding rings, and an antifriction thrust bearing for each of the rings comprising a pivoted roller adapted to engage the lower side face of its respective riding ring.

12. The combination with. an inclinec. rotatable dump having riding rings, trunnion wheel supports for the riding rings, an antifriction thrust bearing for each of the rings comprising a laterally yieldable frame, and a pivoted roller therein adapted to engage the lower side face of its. respective riding ring. 7 a

13. The combination with a rotatable dump having annular riding rings, each provided with a stop lug and means to support loaded cars in position to unbalance the dump, of a series of latches, one for each stop lug, normally disposed in the path of the stop lugs, yieldable means acting through said latches and lugs to hold the unbalanced dump in initial position, and means to simultaneously disengage all said latches.

14c. The combination with a rotatable dump having annular riding rings each provided with a stop lug and means to support loaded cars in position to unbalance the dump, of a series of latches, one for each stop lug, normally disposed in the path of the stop lugs, yieldable means to restrain upward movements of the latches responsive to thrust from said stop lugs, a common longitudinal shaft having a non-rigid connection with each latch and adapted to move all laterally and simultaneously out of the path of the stop lugs, and means to mount said latches for'lateral and vertical pivotal movement, substantially as described.

15. The combination with a rotatable dump and its wheel supports, of stop lugs on the dump, automatic brake means to prevent a reverse rotation of the dump, yieldable latches adapted to be engaged and disto rotate norniially o placed by the lugs, and means to render said brake inoperative while said latches are displaced.

16. The combination with an automatic gravity operated rotatable dump unbalanced in one direction with a car n1 n1 right position therein, of stop lugs on the hump, yieldable spring-pressed latclns adap d to engage the lugs and hold the tin a must rotation, a brake disposed to preent a reverse rotation of the dinnp,

and means controlled. by the latches to disengage the brake.

1?. The combination with a rotary dump, riding ring and its wheel supports, of a stop lug on the ring, a spring-pressed pivoted latch adapted. to engage said lug and bring the dump to rest, an inclined brake riding the ring above the latch and disposed in the path of the latch to be disengaged thereby when the latch is displaced by the dump, as and for the purposes described.

18. A rotatable dump having plurality of riding rings, means to unbalance the dump for automatic rotation, stops on said rings, a plurality of yieldable latches adapted to be engaged by said stops at the completion of the dumps rotation, said latches being adapted to yield responsive to the thrust of the stops and pull the dump back to initial position, a plurality of automatic brakes which permit the dump to rotate freely throughout its forward motion and which prevent its reverse rotation and means controlled by the latches to hold said brakes out of service while they are pulling the dump back to its initial position.

19. A rotatable dump having a plurality of annular rings, and a series of pivoted brake bars inclined upward and resting by gravity against the rings in posit-ion to prevent a reverse rotation thereof, and a series of spring-pressed stops adapted to yieldably engage and bring the dump to rest in initial position, said stops being disposed in position as they yield to strike and disengage the bralre bars from the rings.

20. A rotatable dump having a plurality of annular rings, stop lugs on said rings, yieldable latches adapted to be engaged by the lugs when they rotate past initial position and to stop the rotation of the dump, a plurality of brake members which engage the rings and are adapted to prevent a reverse rotation of the dump, and means operable by the latches when displaced by the stop lugs to render the brakes inoperative until the dump swings back to its initial position.

21. A rotatable dump having a plurality of annular rings, a stop lug on each ring, spring-Dressed latches disposed normally in position to be engaged by said. lug and adapted to arrest the rotation of the dump and return i to initial position, and a brake for each ring comprising an inclined hinged brake arm held by gravity in position to engage and stop the drum, which arm is disposed above the adjacent latch and is movable thereby, when the latch is displaced by the lugs, to hold the brake disengaged, substantially as described.

22. The combination with a rotatable dump having annular riding rings, each provided with a stop lug and means to support loaded cars in position to unbalance the dump, of a series of latches, one for each stop lug, normally disposed in the path of the stop lugs, yieldable means to restrain the movements of the latches responsive to thrust from said stop lugs, a common longi tudinal shaft adapted to move all simultaneously out of the path of the stop lugs, spring means to hold said shaft and latches in lug engaging position, and means to mount said latches for movement responsive to said lugs and shaft, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

EDWIN JOHN BEST. 

